


gold, please

by setoso



Series: your tiny heart of gold [1]
Category: Figure Skating RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, Gen, general softness all around, yuzu is a tiny dragon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-09
Updated: 2020-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-12 16:58:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22630354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/setoso/pseuds/setoso
Summary: Yuzu is a tiny dragon in search of gold. Nathan is a gold medalist.
Relationships: Nathan Chen & Yuzuru Hanyu
Series: your tiny heart of gold [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1628044
Comments: 7
Kudos: 36





	gold, please

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to post this before 4CC, so that the joke would still make sense, but I was scared of jinxing the results (cries)  
Thanks to capra for feeding me additional ideas for this au and to [scribblingsquirrel](/users/scribblingsquirrel/) for the beta ♥
> 
> **Please don't repost or share my work in any way or form!**

  
  
  


Yuzu just appears one day, sniffing the air, like he's being drawn by something. He takes one good look at Nathan (moving his tiny dragon head up until he almost flops on his back, because Yuzu is a tiny dragon on the floor and Nathan is a human) and then his little wings flutter as he gains height in the air, landing on Nathan's shoulder with a squeak. His snout digs into the ticklish skin on the side of Nathan’s throat as he tries to get under the ribbon of the medal Nathan is wearing and, _Oh, you little thief_.

Nathan clutches the gold medal closer, tsking. Yuzu lets out a sorrowful whine but gives up, perching on Nathan's shoulder instead. His tail is wrapped around the back of Nathan’s neck, occasionally flicking his ear. It’s ticklish.

He tries to make a run for it when Nathan naps, but the medal is too heavy and he can't fly higher than two centimeters off the ground. Nathan catches him scurrying around the floor and raises an eyebrow.

"Give it back, " he says, extending his hand. Yuzu turns his tiny head the other way, his tail refusing to let go of the ribbon. A tiny ploom of blueish smoke comes out of his mouth when Nathan crouches near him, but it dissipates the moment Nathan scratches his tiny head.

Dragons don't purr, but the gentle hum Nathan can feel under his fingers comes pretty close to it.

"Ok, fine. You can stay if you want, but that medal is still mine. Don't go around with it."

Yuzu gives him an indignant look, but he doesn't look that displeased when he makes a home on the corner of Nathan's pillow, keeping the medal warm under his tummy. His scales are a bit see-through and Nathan can almost see his golden core, the brilliant color giving out to hues of blue and green.

Yuzu is very warm, and that's really the reason Nathan decides to keep him; nothing more, nothing less.

  
  
  


Yuzu doesn’t grow much in size, which is something Nathan is grateful for, since it means he can hide him down his shirt when he skates. Yuzu likes the ice, especially flopping on it with his tummy and sliding from one side of the rink to the other, but he's too warm for it, creating puddles that Nathan isn't sure how to explain to the zamboni staff.

Yuzu also keeps his translucent scales. His golden core doesn’t get any bigger, but he does glow warmer when he's particularly comfy on his back in Nathan's lap, kicking his tiny feet at the medal hanging from his neck, making it swing left and right.

  
  
  


Yuzu has one medal he's particularly fond of. Nathan hasn't been able to touch his Four Continents gold since he brought it back, because Yuzu hisses every time his hand nears it. He has a bad habit of nosing at it until the ribbon is looped several times around his tiny neck. Nathan’s scared that he's going to hurt himself one of these days. Most times Nathan ends up with a bitten finger, which is a small price for ultimately managing to untangle him from it. 

(Yuzu's bites never hurt much because his teeth are tiny and soft like the rest of him. Nathan still pretends to _ouch_ every time, because it makes Yuzu puff out his lightly colored chest in proudful domination. It would have been more awe inspiring if he wasn't apple sized.)

Out of all of Nathan's fingers, Yuzu likes his thumb the most because it’s the perfect pillow for his head when he's tired and in need of a chin rub. On those days, when he’s flopping down from exhaustion after playing around for too long, he likes to lay on top of the knots in Nathan's muscles to help heat-massage them out. It’s like Yuzu can sense where the sorest spots are and he curls up on them. 

He also jumps repeatedly on Nathan's belly to wake him up every Saturday morning. Nathan likes to go for morning runs and Yuzu suffers through the hassle and sweat of it only because on the way back Nathan always passes by a small jewelry shop. So Yuzu gets to glue his tiny snout on the glass display and stare longingly at the golden pendants.

  
  
  


It's their thing; Nathan sleeps in his bed and Yuzu in his pile of gold medals. Except the day when Nathan returns home with silver. 

Yuzu makes an unimpressed noise, tapping his tail impatiently as if to say _“You need to try harder”_, but Nathan's tired and disappointed and his hip hurts so badly. He falls asleep on his side, wearing his silver medal, wishing for things to have been different.

When Nathan wakes up he feels warm - bordering on a little too warm - but it’s a pleasant kind of toasty. It takes him a while to realize that Yuzu is curled up next to his chest, snoozing. His tail doesn't swish excitedly when Nathan pets him, and his tiny dragon ears have flopped down, making him appear even smaller. He's got one of his pieces of gold foil with him, which he's managed to shape into a wonky circle. 

(It’s not real gold, just messily painted thin foil, but the sparkle of it still manages to effectively hypnotize Yuzu and keep him sitting on it for hours. It’s very efficient when Nathan needs to go to places; a handful of the stuff is usually enough for Yuzu to peacefully fall asleep in the folds of Nathan's shirt.)

Yuzu uses his head to push the flimsy material on top of Nathan's medal, covering it in golden flakes. He keeps squeaking and making small mournful noises, looking at Nathan like he should be helping Yuzu. So Nathan does, pressing and smoothing down gold foil, until the silver of his medal is hidden and looks more like one of those chocolate coins that have been forgotten in the candy cupboard for a long time. 

Yuzu finally makes a triumphant noise and his tail swishes excitedly once again as he yips once, twice. He climbs on top of Nathan's head, nestling into his curls, as if Nathan is all the gold he needs.

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> yes, the title is the aoe2 taunt for requesting gold ayy  
find me at [@ssetoso](https://twitter.com/ssetoso)!


End file.
